The more progress the louder the detractors

I have always wondered why this nation of ours with hardly any major resources and no coastline is a centre of attention for the global media, probably more than any other African nation. What is so special about Rwanda that even a simple sneeze will find its way into the headlines in international press? True, our history is partly to blame but certainly just like Rwanda, a handful of other countries have witnessed different pogroms on different magnitudes. I have not seen Cambodia attract this kind of attention. In fact during last year’s Presidential elections, you would think the entire world had descended on Rwanda. Bulletin after bulletin, headline after headline---all prophesying how Rwanda was about crumble! Being an election period, I thought this hullaballoo would end as soon as the elections were over. In fact with an overwhelming vote for President Kagame, I interpreted this as a slap in the face of those mischievous characters who had predicted dark days ahead of Rwanda’s future. The overwhelming turn up for this vote and the subsequent mass endorsement of the incumbent translated into a message from Rwanda to the world that ----leave us alone, we know what is best for us. But even after these elections, the mudslinging seems to be continuous, signaling a calculated strategy from Rwanda’s detractors to spoil the post-election honey moon. Take an example of the recent empty accusations that Rwanda was planning to assassinate two little-known lost souls in the United Kingdom. I say little known, because even the ‘gitifu’ of my ‘akagari’ in my home district of Gatsibo is more prominent than the two chaps. My past active engagement in mainstream media gave me chance to at least know who is who in the Rwandan politics. Rene Mugenzi and Jonathan Musonera do not feature on that list but thanks to the support of the London metro police, they can now parade themselves as heroes. I have always believed that issues of unprofessional conduct or irresponsible utterances are a common happening for the developing world. But how else would you explain the accusations from the London police that Rwanda was planning to assassinate two political pygmies in the so-called opposition circle. How would a professional force quickly leak such accusations to the media without taking a moment to verify these preposterous allegations that could be the clear work of disgruntled elements? If indeed was in the business of this administration to assassinate its opponents, why would it target these two under-dogs and yet there are’ heavy weights’ when it comes to business of subversive activities. Why was this so-called assassin not arrested? Why wasn’t he paraded before the media or before the courts? What are the identities of this assassin and what was his game plan? Why didn’t the UK issue a diplomatic protest for abuse of the good relations with Rwanda or its sovereignty, if this accusation was true? All these gaps expose the prank in the story. It was a perfected move crafted by the routine noise makers and innocently or naively swallowed by the London metro police. Unfortunately the London police hurried to make irresponsible comments without any thorough read into the malice contained in the accusations. Such was the case with last year’s shooting of Kayumba Nyamwasa. I have always wondered how a ‘hired’ assassin (these must be very professional people) would attack someone seated in a car and aim for the lower abdomen, leaving the most prominent and important part that any assassin would be targeting. Anyone who has never held a gun would also laugh at this amateurish theory. Talk of movies indeed! Like I mentioned earlier, the amount of attention Rwanda receives is at times too nagging. We do not have oil, no diamonds and no gold but the endless headlines on Rwanda make us look like we are a nation somewhere in the Middle East. What Rwandans need to know is that as long as this country’s star keeps rising, we will always attract the attention of some spoilers. As long as this zeal of making Rwanda a better place for its people is continued, there will always be those who wish to see us crash. But like the Chinese say, you cannot prevent the birds of sorrow from flying over your head, but you can prevent them from building a nest in your hair. Aasiimwe.wordpress.com. On twitter @aasiimwe

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The more progress the louder the detractors